I’m PCMag’s expert on fitness and smart home technology, and I’ve written more than 6,000 articles and reviews in the 10-plus years I’ve been here. I unbox, set up, test, and review a wide range of consumer tech products from my home in Florida, often with the help of my pitbull Bradley. I’m also a yoga instructor, and have been actively teaching group and private classes for nearly a decade. Over the next 50 years, Hamilton Beach continued to bring innovation to the small appliance marketplace.
The goal is to get the vinegar distributed throughout the machine. This model comes with reusable metal filters for both single-serve and full-size brewers. The GoldTone filter takes a little more effort to clean because you need to scrape the spent coffee grounds, but it is more environmentally friendly and cost-effective in the long run. A metal filter also produces a bolder and more aromatic brew. The best feature of this single-serve coffee brewer is that it isn’t reliant on K-Cups.
It’s a no-frills machine, with just a single on-off button that’s as easy to operate as they come. It also provides easy-to-follow instructions (and corresponding measurements on the water reservoir) for making iced coffee, a unique feature among the machines in this guide. While most automatic drip brewers hide the filter away in the machine’s body, the Zutto’s filter is inside the carafe, replicating a pour-over, for a different coffee-brewing experience. This also makes for a lower profile machine that’s easily tucked away.
In 1990, the Hamilton Beach merged with Proctor-Silex of Richmond, VA, and became the largest manufacturer of small appliances in the United States. The merger also brought in an entire line of Proctor Silex coffee makers. It didn’t take long for Hamilton Beach to apply its Good Thinking to coffee maker starbucks mocha innovation. In 1998, Hamilton Beach introduced a coffee maker with a removable water reservoir for easy filling. The company really put on their thinking caps in 2003 and introduced the Hamilton Beach BrewStation Coffeemaker that dispenses hot coffee direct to the cup – no carafe, no spills, no pouring.
With a nearly 15-minute average brew time, it was one of the slowest coffee makers we tested. Because it’s been discontinued, it’s no longer a pick, but it is still a good option if you happen to find one. In terms of interface, this model is relatively straightforward, with clearly labeled buttons that are easy to read. Preprogramming a brew for the morning, for example, is easily accomplished by selecting “Delay Brew” and setting the hour of the future batch. For instance, we realized that the machine doesn’t “remember” the brew settings you used last.
The 2-Way has a much shorter descaling process than Keurig’s convertible brewer. The 2-Way descaling process ran for 30 minutes, while the Keurig K-Duo descaling cycle took 75 minutes. Descaling is a long-term cleaning task performed every few months to reduce the build-up of mineral deposits that can collect in a coffee maker due to hard water. The 2-Way looks like an attractive alternative to the somewhat wasteful single-serving pod systems available, so how does its brew quality stack up against the Keurig and Nespresso? Overall the 2-Way isn’t as convenient as pod machines, but it eliminates the extra cost and waste of single-serving pods.
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Hamilton Beach coffee makers, in particular, are known for being affordable and reliable, making them a great option for people who caffeinate to live and live to caffeinate without putting a hefty dent in your wallet. If you’re imagining that your only option in this brand is a plain ol’ coffee pot without any bells and whistles or customization, you’re not alone. You’ll be surprised to find that Hamilton Beach has coffee makers of all varieties, giving the options you want without adding extra dollar signs to the price tag.
The brews on the Ninja were the hottest overall, with an average finished temperature of 188 °F. Not only did the hotter brewing water extract better flavors more thoroughly, it also means the coffee will be at a pleasant drinking temperature directly after brewing, even if you add milk. The warming plate kept the coffee hot for mr coffee machine four hours before shutting off automatically, though the flavor did become a little acrid after hour two. You can avoid that by simply turning off the Stay Warm function, which we recommend doing if you plan to drink the coffee relatively shortly after brewing. The cup measurements on the outside of the tank are easy to read.